Related Content
Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – A Juncos, Puerto Rico resident was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Pedro A. Delgado to a total of five years and four months of imprisonment for aggravated identity theft and bank fraud violations in two separate cases, announced U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow of the District of Puerto Rico.
According to court documents, Juan Rivera Mundo, 27, devised a scheme to acquire individuals’ debit cards and PIN numbers from legitimate debit card transactions with the help of other people working as cashiers at multiple business locations in Puerto Rico that he recruited as part of the scheme. The defendant then used counterfeit access device equipment to “clone” those debit cards and then used them to illegally withdraw cash and make extravagant purchases, all for his own enrichment and that of others. In doing so, Rivera Mundo stole debit card numbers and personal identifying information in order to fraudulently obtain funds under the control of a federally insured financial institution.
Juan Rivera Mundo was originally charged on March 24, 2022. While on bail pending trial, Rivera Mundo engaged in additional illegal skimming activity. He was then charged for the new conduct and arrested on August 25, 2022. The defendant pleaded guilty to both cases on November 9, 2023.
In addition to the sixty-four months sentence of imprisonment, Rivera Mundo was ordered to serve five (5) years of supervised release and to pay restitution in the amount of $18,528.60.
Defendant was also charged in a third and separate federal indictment in the District of Puerto Rico on May 11, 2023, for conspiracy to commit wire fraud in 2020 by fraudulently requesting a Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loan as part of a scheme to defraud and obtain money and property from the United States Small Business Administration and a financial institution. This case is currently pending disposition.
The United States Secret Service investigated the bank fraud and aggravated identity theft cases. Assistant U.S. Attorney Marie Christine Amy prosecuted the cases.
###